Art Berke, a lifelong White Sox fan, has worked at the highest levels of the sports industry with Major League Baseball, ABC Television and Sports Illustrated. He grew up in Northwest Indiana, in the shadow of old Comiskey Park, and proudly proclaims 2005 as the best year of his life. Art offers his glass half-full opinions and observations as he lives and dies with the Sox.

Mark it Down: Teahen Breaks Out of Slump as Sox Hammer D-Backs, 10-3

Will the real MarkTeahen please step forward? The new White Sox third baseman (pictured above) was acquired from the Royals during the off-season partially due to his dominance over Sox pitching–particularly Mark Buehrle. In other words, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

Whether he has been trying too hard to impress his new teammates or simply is in a routine slump, Teahen has had a very disappointing spring. Going into yesterday’s game against the Diamondbacks at Camelback Ranch, ultimately a 10-3 Sox victory, he was hitting .143. It got so bad that instead of staying with the varsity, Teahen was jettisoned to minor league camp in an effort to get him straightened out. Well, so far so good.

This afternoon, Teahen’s first appearance since his short stint in the outer fields, he went 2-4 with a single and a two-run homer–his first extra base hit this spring. While Teahen provided the best news of the day, there were other happy highlights:

* Omar Vizquel snapped out of a slump by going 2 for 4 with a double, two RBI, a walk with two runs scored.

* Carlos Quentin was 3 for 5 with two RBI.

* Juan Pierre went 3 for 4 with two runs scored and his fourth stolen base of the spring.

* Mark Kotsay was 2 for 4 along with two runs scored.

* Pitching-wise, John Danks hurled six good innings, allowing three runs and five hits. Greg Aquino, Bobby Jenks and Erick Threets each pitched a scoreless inning to close out the win.

The Sox are now 7-11-4 this spring. They travel to nearby Peoria tomorrow afternoon to face the Padres.

Meta

The following are trademarks or service marks of Major League Baseball entities and may be used only with permission of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. or the relevant Major League Baseball entity: Major League, Major League Baseball, MLB, the silhouetted batter logo, World Series, National League, American League, Division Series, League Championship Series, All-Star Game, and the names, nicknames, logos, uniform designs, color combinations, and slogans designating the Major League Baseball clubs and entities, and their respective mascots, events and exhibitions.